A well known casino game is Baccarat. Baccarat is a live table game that uses a standard deck of fifty-two playing cards. The object of Baccarat is for a player to successfully wager on which of two hands, designated the Banker hand and the Player hand, is going to win. The player is paid even money for the wager if he or she wagers on the winning hand and loses the wager if he or she selects the losing hand.
Play of Baccarat is commenced after all wagers are made by dealing two cards to the Bank position and two cards are dealt from the shoe to the Player position on the table layout. The cards are turned face up and the values of the Banker hand and the Player hand is determined by summing the face values of the cards in each hand. If the values of the cards are added together and the total of the hand exceeds nine, then the hand value is determined modulo ten. In other words, all hand values range from a low of zero to a high of nine. For example, a seven and an eight total fifteen, but the hand value is five. An Ace and a nine total ten, but the hand value is zero. Whichever of the Banker hand or the Player hand is closest to a total of nine is the winner.
Depending on the hand score of the initial Player hand and the initial Banker hand, one more card may be dealt to the Player hand, the Banker hand or both. If either or both of the initial two card Player hand and the initial Banker hand have a hand score of 8 or 9, the wagers are resolved without dealing any additional cards: the Player hand wins if the Player hand score is greater than the Banker hand score; and the Banker hand wins if the Banker hand score is greater than the Player hand score. If both the Player hand and Banker hand have a hand score that is less than 8, a third card may be dealt to one or both of the Player hand and/or Banker hand. The rules for determining whether a third card is dealt are fixed; that is, there is no discretion for either the Player hand or the Banker hand on whether a third card is dealt.
Rule #1: If the initial two card Player hand has a hand score of 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5, the Player hand draws a third card. If the initial two card Player hand has a hand score of 6 or 7, the Player hand stands and does not receive a third card.
Rule #2: If the Player hand stands and does not draw a third card, then the Banker hand follows Rule #1. In other words, if the Player hand has a hand score of 6 or 7, the Banker hand draws a third card on a hand score of 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5 and the Banker hand stands on a hand score of 6 or 7.
Rule #3: If the Player hand draws a third card, the Banker hand must draw or stand as follows:
Banker handSTANDS whenBanker hand twoBanker hand DRAWS whenPlayer's handcard hand score:Player's hand third card is:third card is:0, 1, or 2Bank always draws30, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, or 9842, 3, 4, 5, 6, or 70, 1, 8, or 954, 5, 6, or 70, 1, 2, 3, 8, or 966 or 70, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 8, or 97Banker always stands
At the end of each hand, winning wagers are paid and losing wagers are collected by the house. Any commission due to the house is marked in commission boxes in the center of the table.
As may be appreciated, one limitation of Baccarat is the lack of wagering options and low payouts. As noted above, winning wagers on a Player hand are paid at even money, while winning wagers on a Banker hand are paid at even money less a commission. It can be seen, therefore, that there is a need in the art for a modification to Baccarat which allows more betting options and provides the flexibility to issue awards greater than standard Baccarat awards, at the discretion of the operator. Additionally, all the wagers in Baccarat are resolved in a single game. Thus, it can be seen that there is a need for methods for conducting Baccarat games that reward a player for continuing play of the Baccarat over multiple games.